Local mining companies’ operations limited by inadequate capital – Mike Hammah
The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mike Hammah has bemoaned the unavailability of capital and technical expertise for local miners to conduct full range modern exploration.
He indicated that local miners are usually unable to finance exploration beyond the reconnaissance stage. He said on reaching that stage, the cash strapped local miners then proceed to look for foreign partners in order to continue with the exploration work.
He made this known at the 4th West and Central Africa Mining Summit in Accra.
The summit which was under the theme ‘Ghana’s mineral resources endowment and opportunity in the minerals and mining sector’ is seen as an important forum for discussions in the minerals and mining sector and also to promote opportunities for networking as well as attracting potential investors to Africa.
Hammah stressed the need to explore other opportunities in the mining and allied industries such as the solar, salt, upstream and downstream production facilities, service and engineering sector, and infrastructure development that needed investments besides investing in exploration and exploitation of minerals.
“For the first time in the history of the country, high-resolution airborne data, made up of magnetic and radiometric information, covering the whole country is now available. Some areas have also been covered with gravity and electromagnetic surveys,” he revealed.
He however, expressed worry about the challenges that confront the mining industry, one of which is the creative integration of mining as an economic activity within the context of environmental integrity and social concerns, stating that it is important that the three areas of economic, social and environmental aspect of the industry need to be addressed.
However, he urged investors to partner government to rehabilitate the existing railway infrastructure and expand it to areas of the country because it will provide an assured market for bulk minerals and other commodities.
By Paskal Kelvin Kudiabor